Huge Google Sheets Update Introduces Macros

Google Updates Google Sheets by Bringing in Macros to the Sheet

As with all Google products, at some point or the other, they all undergo some updates, it’s no different for Google sheets too. One of the major updates to Google sheets will be the addition of macros, which many are relieved to see on the Google platform. Who’s to say this won’t bring Microsoft excel users to Google sheets. Adding macros to Google sheets will give those hard core users of spreadsheets a much needed break as they won’t have to do the same thing over and over again.

Being a part of every other major suite out there, macros was sorely missing out in Google sheets. This addition to Google’s sheets will be a big thumbs up in their favor. With this Google sheets update, users will be able to finally record macros. Doing the same thing over and over again is boring and not to mention time consuming and with the advent of computers we thought we could put all that in the past but for a long time not having Macros in Google sheets seemed that we were still in that past.

Adding Macros to Google sheets: 

Adding Macros to Google sheets may be the most useful update to Google Sheets in a long long time. Now you will be able to see a new “record Macros” feature present in the tool bar that does exactly what you hope it would do- to stop you from having to repeat instructions again and again.

All you have to do is start your recording, go through your steps and when it is all done sit back and relax and by that I mean start the whole process again by simply running macros again.

The future is here with Google sheets at last. Now you needn’t spend more time on formatting and reformatting the same spreadsheet again and again or until you pull out all the hair on your head.

Going further, Google sheets even converts your macros into Apps script code, so if you are so inclined to make any changes you can always edit that app script.

Adding other features to Google Sheets:

Macros is not the only new feature to be added on to Google sheets. You can now also add page breaks to demarcate the pages you want to print, customize page sizes, the option to convert a cell into a check box list, there are also new options for row and column grouping and you can now even group data according to time frame like by week, month or year.

Google is even adding artificial intelligence to Google sheets. Google has even added intelligent pivot tables in their Google sheets which will help in analyzing and helping the user in getting more insights into their data irrespective of their skills in data analytics.

With “Explore” found in Google sheets, you will now be able to decipher the data on spreadsheets more easily than ever before. This feature uses machine intelligence to do that.

Direct High-Speed Charging of Electric Cars by Solar Panels

Charging Electric cars via a solar panel

Electric cars are now the “in thing”. With this fad on the up and up, many are now looking for ways to charge the car in ways that can be energy efficient. The whole point of these electric cars is that they should not take up much fuel and can be charged from renewable sources of energy that does not require the burning of fossil fuels, which would otherwise be the same thing as filling up the car with all fuel. Therefore researchers have now discovered a novel way to charge these electric cars using solar energy.

Researchers are now considering charging electric cars using solar panels. By using this method of charging the cars, people will not only save the environment from the burning of fossil fuels but will also be using a renewable source of energy, this is besides getting tax concessions.

Charging electric cars using solar panels and their problems: 

Present practice in using a solar panel means that charge from the solar panel has to be converted from direct current to alternating current to charge an electric car. This normally would require a 50Hz AC network, to convert the direct current into alternating current.

But this method is not really beneficial for anyone. In that it is not cost effective or efficient. This is because of two main reasons. To convert current to AC involves a lot of costs and needs many steps. Secondly, to convert from DC to AC requires two converters one for the solar panel and the other for the car, again leading to high costs and installments.

What’s the solution then? 

A better alternative as discovered by the researchers is to use a single converter that charges the car from the panels via a DC link which connects to the AC electricity grid.

Researchers then came up with a 10kW converter that has an internal DC link and three terminals that would allow the car to charge both from the solar panel and the electricity grid.

What’s so good about this method is that the integrated DC charger has a higher efficiency and is three times smaller than the current practice.

Another advantage of using this method is that not only will you be able to charge your car, you will now also be able to charge your entire house using this new method. You could also return the electricity back to the grid that is not before first converting it into AC.

The Future of Charging Electric cars: 

This system can be expanded to connect several chargers to solar panels thus expanding its use to business parks and residential areas. The company Power Research Electronics has gone a step further and made this theoretical system a reality by developing a number of high speed charging stations of this type.
In this way electric cars will not only consume less fuel, thereby burning less fossil fuel and in turn less damage to the atmosphere, but will also earn tax concessions by using a renewable source of energy.

HumanDrive Project: Mimicking human driving in autonomous vehicles

HumanDrive Project: Human like driving in Autonomous cars

With AI technology and machine learning the latest “in things”, autonomous driving was never that far away. We already see some forms of it on the road, whether it be in the form of autonomous parking or cruise control, all of this has to do with AI and machine learning tech. The HumanDrive project started by Nissan’s European center will test out how autonomous cars face the UK terrain, through country sides and motorways.

The HumanDrive project will feature a 30 month trek across the UK all without the input or intervention of humans. It’s going to be human- like driving without the human behind the steering wheel.

What is the HumanDrive Project? 

The HumanDrive project aims at making the outside world think that a human is driving a car when in reality all the systems within the car will be operated by a machine. The challenge is for the autonomous car to appear like a human is driving it through all types of terrains and through all types of landscapes whether it be through the country side or in crowded towns.

Handing in the reins of the vehicle to a machine, may prove to be a smoother experience for a driver than simply using automated driving for parking or during cruise control.

Using various simulation models and in depth analysis of how drivers behave on the road were the key ingredients when it came to developing automated driving in the HumanDrive project.

By identifying the key ingredients in the HumanDrive project, researchers were able to list the risks and behaviors of human drivers in those scenarios and establish it within the HumanDrive project.

How autonomous should a car be in the HumanDrive Project? 

Studies conducted by researchers on the HumanDrive project was done so as to determine the degree of autonomous driving that people preferred and whether the driving should mimic individual styles. All these studies were directed at determining the level of control in such autonomous vehicles in the HumanDrive project.

Testing of the HumanDrive project: 

Researchers applied an externally created autonomous driving software to a simulation model in order to determine risks and responses in those settings.

Another method of testing had been to develop geo-specific databases that would give the autonomous vehicle a feel of the terrain in which they would be driving.

The HumanDrive Journey: 

The HumanDrive project will kick start its 200 plus mile journey through the UK and culminate in December of next year. The journey will take the autonomous vehicles through the country side and motorways. The whole idea behind the project is to foster confidence in such human-less vehicles and to increase public awareness of them. Another aim of the HumanDrive project is to aid public authorities to benefit from such automated technologies.

The business of automated vehicles: 

Low carbon consumption vehicles and automated vehicles are the future of transport. As the demand for these vehicles increase and more and more people go in for such transport the possibilities of this business sector is enormous. To be more accurate it is 52bn pounds by the year 2035 to the UK alone.

TESS to Search the Sky for New Worlds

The Search for New worlds begins with TESS

Is earth the only inhabitable planet or are there more planets out there that could potentially become a home far away from home for us? Scientists are all ready to launch TESS or Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, which will reportedly look for planets outside the solar system that could potentially support life on their surfaces. TESS will look at the atmospheric compositions of these planets and determine whether they could support life.

TESS is all set for an April 16 launch, with scientists making the final preparations for its two year stint in space. TESS will look for planets around nearby starts that give hints of a livable atmosphere.
TESS will analyze Atmospheric compositions of planets:

Scientists believe that atmospheric compositions hold clues as to whether a planet can hold life or not and this is what TESS will be sent out to do.

TESS is tasked with finding exoplanets by analyzing something that is known as “transit”. Transit is when a planet passes in front of a start causing a dip in the brightness of that star. In the past, scientists have discovered many exoplanets using the technique of transit. Most of these planets are 300 to 3000 lightyears away from us.

TESS’s follow up program will look at the mass of various planets some 4 times the radius of the earth and others smaller than earth.

How will Transit Help scientists? 

With transit, TESS will be able to identify exoplanets and then scientists will use a technique known as “spectroscopy” which is the study of the absorption and emission of light, to determine the mass, density and atmospheric composition of a specific planet.

The water content and other molecules present in the atmosphere of a planet will give key clues as to the possibility of a planet to harbor life.

The Follow-up Observations: 

Follow- up observations of TESS’s findings will be made by scientists using MEarth telescopes which are robotically controlled observatories. Another way scientists plan on observing findings is through a KeplerCam present on a 48 inch telescope. MEarth and Kepler cam will be used to confirm the star that TESS identifies in the transit period.

TESS Guest Investigator Program: 

The worldwide scientific community will be able to participate in this mission through TESS Guest Investigator Program. This participation will maximize the return expected from the mission and contribute in the study of stellar astrophysics, exoplanet characterization and general solar system science.

Launch of TESS: 

TESS is expected to launch on April 16 of this year for its two year mission. The launch will be from Space Launch Complex 40 Cape Canaveral Air Force Station located in Florida.

With the help of gravity from the moon, TESS will begin a 13.7 day orbit of the earth and sixty days after its launch and after checking all its instruments it will begin its two year mission in space. TESS will be all set to discover planets that could potentially hold human life.

Researchers Develop Nanoparticle Films for High-Density Data Storage

High density data storage gets a boost with the development of nanoparticle films

Data generation in this age is quadrupling with each passing day and we are unable to store or manage the mammoth amount of data at our disposal. Therefore finding an alternative which enables us to store data at longer period of time with great stability has become a critical necessity. Now researchers from Northeast Normal University in China has developed new nanoparticle films which are 80 times thinner than the human hair but can easily help in high density data storage. Researchers have asserted that these nanoparticle films can easily archive more than 1000 times worth of data than the traditional DVD on just a 10 by 10 centimeter large piece of film.

Promises usage from wearable device to deep space

It is a remarkable technology and we are likely to see it being used in the wearable devices in the short time. These nanoparticle films can also store the 3D images of the objects or people which can viewed as a 3D hologram with natural realistic and in-depth details later on. These nanoparticle films can be used in the regular devices and the storage medium developed by its usage is also environmentally stable which means used in the outside condition or can even be utilized in the space conditions where harmful radiations are the way of life.

Storing more and more data by taking less and less space

This new kind of nanoparticle films has been designed specifically for the new age holographic data storage. This data storage hasn't found much support or recognition so of today as it makes use of the laser to create as well as read the 3-D holographic recreation of the data present on the nanoparticle films. It is blazing fast with the ability to write as well as read millions of bits at once which makes the holographic data storage way ahead of its traditional counterparts.

The traditional counterpart are namely the optic and magnetic data storage system which happens to record and read just individual bits at a time with is both time consuming and extremely slow when it comes to huge amount of data.

Holographic approach in the high density data storage allows researchers to record information throughout the 3D volume of the entire naoparticle materials. Herein data is not just recorded on the surface but it also researchers to record multiple data or images in the same given area by simply using the light at varied angles and using different colours. Researchers are also working on recoding holographic images on the titania silver films in order to get the similar performance with lesser effort and higher stability.

At the moment researchers are aggressively planning to test the environmental stability of these nanoparticle films in order to ensure quick and safe real life application of the same in the upcoming days. It will certainly help in removing the data storage woes of millions of users worldwide with simple and easier application.